March 2012

Traveling for hours on a bus, sleeping on floors in close quarters, and engaging in servant leadership for nine days does not add up to your typical spring break trip. For 120+ UST students who went on the STLF (Students Today Leaders Forever) trip, however, that is exactly how they spent their break.

Being in the Catholic Leadership Interns had a big impact on how I viewed this trip. I was one of the trip leaders and having the formation of our Friday Interns meetings under my belt showed me that resilience and patience are central attributes in a leader. The most salient life-lesson that I learned from this trip is this: all things will not go according to pre-determined plans if you do not lead with God at the forefront. To be resilient when things go wrong that are beyond your control is no doubt an indication of a good leader. The ability and willingness to take responsibility for these things when you do not keep this in mind is another. Continue Reading

This upcoming weekend is the spring hiatus here at the University. I have a few friends who are heading down to Florida to spend a week on the beach. A few others that I know are going to New York to visit a mutual friend ours who joined the Franciscans a few years ago. Still others among my friends are heading out to do mission work in Honduras and Haiti. And for my part, I will be on a silent retreat for a few days in the wooded hills of Wisconsin.

Four wildly different options among many for Spring Break. And yet, there is a common theme that runs through our plans: it is the promise of leisure. Leisure is not exactly a word Continue Reading